politics

What went wrong with Canada's assisted dying law

rabble staff — Fri, 19 Aug 2016 15:42:11 +0000

August 25, 2016

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Who has the right to die? In his new book The Right to Die: The courageous Canadians who gave us the right to a dignified death, author Gary Bauslaugh examines the stories and experiences of those individuals who want to end their life or have given this practical end-of-life assistance.

All the Liberals had to do was construct legislation that complied with the Supreme Court ruling. But instead they bungled the file on assisted dying. Here's what happened.

The disastrous shift of gun culture in North America

rabble staff — Wed, 21 Oct 2015 18:37:45 +0000

October 22, 2015

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Unlike the Christian God, the gun lobby was made, not begotten. The National Rifle Association (NRA), which today is generally considered the most powerful lobby in the United States, began as the government's lapdog, an organization created to train men for the army.

How has the gun culture in North America shifted into one advocating against safety and gun laws? A.J. Somerset examines this shift and how the gun control movement came to exist in Canada.

Harper's litany of abuses must compel Canadians to fight for change

rabble staff — Tue, 13 Oct 2015 20:47:03 +0000

October 15, 2015

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"News is what someone wants suppressed. Everything else is advertising." -- Katherine Graham, American journalist.

Many, many people have warned Canada that Harper's time in power has been awful. But what happens when a non-partisan observer starts saying the same thing?

The real legacy of Stephen Harper

rabble staff — Mon, 05 Oct 2015 22:41:14 +0000

October 8, 2015

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Want to know what the real legacy of the Harper government is? Look no further than Canada After Harper.

Canada has an international reputation for justice and environmental protection. But do we really deserve it, especially after nine years under the Harper government? Nope!

Hands off Africa: Canada's 300 years of intrusions exposed

rabble staff — Tue, 29 Sep 2015 20:12:40 +0000

October 1, 2015

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The strength of a myth is probably clearest in its capacity to seduce its victims as much as its beneficiaries. While white Canadians have an ego-massaging reason for believing that this country is faultless, a moral beacon, and a peacekeeping global citizen, the fact that some immigrants are equally misled is a testament to the myth's endurance.

Yves Engler's new book "Canada in Africa" exposes the Canadian government's complicity, and exploitation of, Canadian mines in Africa.

The great Canadian debate: Should we reform the Senate?

rabble staff — Wed, 02 Sep 2015 04:51:25 +0000

September 3, 2015

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Author-activist Helen Forsey shares her vision for a better-functioning Senate from her book "A People's Senate for Canada" and reviews the candidates' ideas for Senate reform in this interview.

Harper's takeover of Canada: What do we have left?

rabble staff — Thu, 30 Jul 2015 20:47:04 +0000

August 20, 2015

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The Harper government has been in power since 2006. In that time, it has managed to systematically dismantle Canada's democracy. How? Read on.

Hope betrayed? The Nova Scotia NDP's rocky fall from power

rabble staff — Tue, 05 May 2015 12:58:54 +0000

May 28, 2015

In Rise Again, author and former MLA for Halifax Chebucto Howard Epstein gives us his explanation, in irrepressible detail, of why the Nova Scotia NDP fell from power in 2013 after only one term in office.

Epstein believes the NDP won the election that brought it to power in 2009 because Nova Scotians were ready for a social democratic government and an end to the cozy relationship between government and business that had characterized Nova Scotian politics for too long.

Based on the NDP's proposals for legislation while in opposition, Nova Scotians believed this progressive change is what they were going to get.

What led to the Nova Scotia NDP's fall from power in 2013? In this revealing text, Howard Epstein suggests the path to defeat was set well before the party's 2009 victory.

How can progressives stop Harper this federal election?

rabble staff — Thu, 16 Apr 2015 13:37:24 +0000

April 16, 2015

rabble.ca and Canadian Dimension will be hosting renowned cognitive linguist and author George Lakoff in Toronto this Saturday April 18 for an inspiring all-day symposium. For tickets to this exclusive event, please register here.

With an upcoming election, George Lakoff's wisdom on political framing has never been more relevant for progressives in Canada. Read this excerpt.

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How Canada lets people get tortured

rabble staff — Tue, 31 Mar 2015 13:02:24 +0000

April 2, 2015

Following December's release of the U.S. Senate report on American complicity in torture, Prime Minister Stephen Harper quickly declared, "It has nothing to do whatsoever with the government of Canada." Despite the CIA's close relationship with Canadian state security agencies, as well as two judicial inquiries finding Ottawa complicit in the torture of Canadian citizens in Syria and Egypt, Harper preferred to ignore the facts.

The remarkable story of Mohamedou Ouid Slahi is one of wisdom, humour and despair. In this memoir, Slahi relays a tale of human resilience under the most appalling conditions at Guantanamo Bay.

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Watch out Lefties! The FBI is out to sabotage you

rabble staff — Tue, 03 Mar 2015 04:06:51 +0000

March 5, 2015

According to writers Aaron J. Leonard and Conor A. Gallagher, The Revolutionary Union (RU) and its later incarnation, the Revolutionary Communist Party (RCP), were products of 1960s left-wing radicalism.

"Leaders emerged from the anti-HUAC (House Un-American Activities Committee) protests, the Free Speech Movement, the Peace and Freedom Party alliance with the Black Panthers, and the struggles in the final years of SDS, among other key events of the time," they write.

Let's take a look into The Revolutionary Union and its later incarnation, the Revolutionary Communist Party, to reveal how the FBI and local police worked to undermine progressive unity.

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Harper vs. Canada: Putting the Conservatives' record on trial

rabble staff — Mon, 16 Feb 2015 15:31:12 +0000

February 19, 2015

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It's hard to believe that the Harper government has been in power since 2006. Then again, maybe it's not.

Since Harper and his Conservatives came to Parliament, budgets have been slashed, civil liberties have been threatened and eroded, environments have been destroyed and public services have been gutted.

In 2011, Harper won a majority government. In 2011, rabble hired Karl Nerenberg as our first-ever parliamentary reporter.

Karl Nerenberg has been rabble's parliamentary reporter since 2011, when the Harper government won its majority. Karl's got a new book, full of keen observations about the Harper years.

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Harper's Canada: What have we become?

rabble staff — Tue, 25 Nov 2014 16:42:56 +0000

December 11, 2014

Does it ever feel like you've just woken up and found yourself living in a country you don't recognize? How did Canada get to where it is today -- a more militaristic, nationalistic, free-market-at-all-costs place that seems to have shed its world-renowned reputation as a land of peacekeepers, multiculturalism, social responsibility and scientific advancement?

It hasn't been by accident. In fact, as Donald Gutstein points out in the opening phrase of his book, Harperism: How Stephen Harper and his Think Tank Colleagues Have Transformed Canada, this is exactly what Prime Minister Stephen Harper promised he'd do.

And he did it with a little bit of help from his friends.

Harperism has been sweeping Canada! You know that blend of neoliberal politics, mixed with swift denial and blatant lies. How did we get here, and more importantly, will we ever get out?

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Why the 'War on Drugs' is a total failure

rabble staff — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 20:39:27 +0000

October 9, 2014

The phrase the "War on Drugs" was coined by Richard Nixon during his campaign to eradicate illegal drug use and subsequently picked up by media, politicians and those allies who wanted to 'crack down' on drug offences.

But can the War on Drugs really be won? No, it can't argues Paula Mallea in her new book The War on Drugs: A Failed Experiment because it is an inherently flawed strategy.

Mallea approaches the conversation on drugs from a variety of angles, offering insight into the history of drug use and abuse and the economy of the drug trade. But perhaps most importantly, Mallea discusses why this failed experiment of the War of Drugs was such a failure.

What can be done and what is being done in Canada to move on from the failed "War on Drugs"? Paula Mallea discusses better alternatives in this excerpt.

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Canada went to war. But why?

rabble staff — Tue, 22 Jul 2014 21:01:14 +0000

July 24, 2014

A tidal wave of First World War centenary celebrations -- set to unfold over the next four years -- is now upon us. Canada, like other nations, will spend many millions of dollars commemorating Canadians' participation in the war that was supposed to "end all wars."

But what will these events tell us about the meaning of that cataclysmic war and its lessons for today's world? We can probably guess the answer from statements that key figures have already made.

What kind of values really drove a generation of young people to sign up in huge numbers for one of the bloodiest episodes in human history? Stephen Dale examines this question in 'Noble Illusions.'

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